03.27.08

17 year fall for Ronald Sirull, owner of Brutus the Skydiving Dog

Posted in Internet crimes against children at 15:13 by Administrator

- AZ ICAC Task Force -

Police still seek to learn the identities of Sirull’s victims

Ronald Bruce Sirull, w/m, age 50
5 feet 4 inches, 125 pounds
brown hair, brown eyes
place of birth: Florida

March 25, 2008
- Sentenced: Ronald Bruce Sirull, age 50
- Sentence: Maricopa County Superior Court – 17 years prison, lifetime probation, lifetime sex offender
- Original Charges: Sexual exploitation of a minor, Sexual conduct with a minor, Possession of marijuana, Possession of drug paraphernalia
- Agencies: Phoenix Police Department / Arizona Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, FBI, ICE, Maricopa County Attorney’s Office.

Details
In August 2007, after a two-month undercover investigation, Arizona Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force detectives arrested Ronald Bruce Sirull, a 50 year old packaging employee at a Phoenix Fed/Ex Kinkos for sexual exploitation of a minor (unlawful images), sexual conduct with a minor and possession of marijuana.

During the investigation Sirull arranged for and completed a “dead drop” of unlawful images in exchange for money with an undercover investigator of the Arizona ICAC Task Force.

Pursuant to legal process and with the assistance of the Internet service provider, Qwest, investigators were able to gather important information that furthered the investigation.

Sirull was later found to possess videos depicting himself engaged in sex acts with unidentified persons believed to be minors. The true identities of the persons depicted in the images are still unknown.

Sirull was arrested at his workplace, a FedEx Kinkos in Phoenix. He offered no resistance to the arrest. Search warrants were served at the business and also at Sirull’s nearby home. Items of evidence were seized from both locations. Special agents from the FBI and ICE assisted in the search. Sirull’s vehicle was also seized for forfeiture because he used it to facilitate the offense.

Sirull has worked as a private investigator and possesses a concealed weapons permit. He has lived in Arizona and Florida and has traveled throughout the US. He gained notoriety several years ago as the owner of Brutus the Skydiving Dog. Sirull made numerous skydiving jumps accompanied by his pet daschund which he strapped to his stomach during the dives. Sirull and his dog possess a Guiness world record as the highest skydiving dog. He made promotional public appearances, accompanied by his dog, at skydiving events and air shows.

The investigation was submitted to the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office for prosecution. On March 25, 2008, Sirull plead guilty in Maricopa County Superior Court to charges related to the unlawful images. He was sentenced to 17 years prison, lifetime probation and lifetime sex offender status.

The victims depicted in the unlawful images with Sirull are still unidentified. Police are requesting that anyone with information about unlawful activities involving Sirull to contact Detective Jerry Barker Phoenix Police Crimes against Children Unit at 602-495-0681.

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Links to images of Sirull from the World Wide Web:
http://www.theinternetparty.org/images/dogdiving2.jpg
http://www.theinternetparty.org/images/dogdiving3.jpg
http://www.heferito.com/image_folder/skydog-large.jpg
http://www.flyingchutes.com/photos/1_story_brutus1002e.jpg
http://media.collegepublisher.com/media/paper410/thumbs/t_3dc788f39a9c4-72-1.jpg

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03.26.08

Contraband Images in Arizona: Feb-Mar 2008

Posted in Internet crimes against children at 20:21 by Administrator

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03.23.08

Ethics – Australia – Cops fail integrity testing, but results remain secret

Posted in Ethics at 23:33 by Administrator

Australia – Cops fail integrity testing, but results remain secret

Article from: The Daily Telegraph, By Edith Bevin and Kelvin Bissett. March 24, 2008

The wallet containing $285 handed in at the Katoomba police station was too tempting for Senior Constable Kate Michelle Howes to ignore – so she went shopping. That mistake cost the 27-year-old officer her career. Howes had no idea the lost wallet was a deftly targeted test of her integrity, orchestrated from within the NSW Police Force.

Her case is the only public evidence that the force still conducts integrity tests among its own ranks as part of its fight against corruption. But the results of these tests, a good barometer of the cleanness of the force, is not information the police want you to know.

It is one of a growing list of matters sought by The Daily Telegraph under Freedom of Information that is being refused release by the force. Last May, Howes pleaded guilty in the Mount Druitt Local Court to embezzlement. She was fined $1000 and placed on a three-year good behaviour bond. Worse was to come. On February 2 this year, Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione dismissed Howes, using his authority under section 181d of the Police Act 1990.

Integrity testing was a key reform arising from the Wood royal commission in the mid-1990s. But details of how the tests are done – and, more important, how many officers pass or fail them – are not for public discussion. The police have argued that to discuss any aspect of its program – even the release of statistics on how many are undertaken – would undermine its effectiveness. In a ruling earlier this month, the Ombudsman backed this secrecy.

“The public interest favours the continued successful operation of the integrity testing system and consequently continued secrecy regarding the numbers and conduct of integrity testing,” investigation officer Maya Borthwick said.

In Howes’ case, it was a clever sting. Foreign coins were tossed in with the cash to make it appear as though the wallet belonged to a tourist who would not be around to claim it. The person who handed it in appeared to be a member of the public. Howes succumbed to temptation and went shopping, apparently for clothing and manchester. She still had $150 left when she was charged.

Figures released in 1998 revealed that of the 40 sting operations carried out, just 18 officers passed. Despite this, a police spokesman yesterday ruled out releasing any details of the integrity testing program. “Police will not reveal methodology or how regularly integrity testing is conducted,” the spokesman said. “However, police can confirm that integrity tests have led to criminal charges being laid.”

Not all officers who fail the tests are sacked. Some remain in the force but face internal disciplinary proceedings.

Retrieved March 23, 2008 from http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,23420248-5001021,00.html?from=public_rss

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Sioux Falls, South Dakota – Arrest for Solicitation of a Minor

Posted in Internet crimes against children at 22:57 by Administrator

Dr. Kardasz: The story below comes from the City of Sioux Falls web site. Great work!
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City of Sioux Falls (South Dakota) web site

2/27/2008, Sioux Falls Police Department

Arrest for Solicitation of a Minor

The Sioux Falls/Minnehaha County Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force made an arrest February 26, 2008, as a result of their continued online chat investigations.

ICAC Task Force detectives conducted an investigation in internet chat rooms in an attempt to identify child predators. As a result of this investigation, an arrest was made February 26, 2008, of an adult male for solicitation of a minor. This individual solicited who he believed to be a thirteen-year-old girl for sex.

A warrant for the arrest of the suspect was issued by a Minnehaha County Circuit Court Judge for solicitation of a minor with a bond amount set at $10,000 cash. The suspect was arrested at 1 p.m. on February 26, 2008, at his residence without incident.

Suspect: Joshua Joseph Zimmerman, Renner, SD; date of birth: May 9, 1985.

The suspect was lodged in the Minnehaha County jail and the investigation is continuing.

Retrieved March 23, 2008 from
http://www.siouxfalls.org/City_Home/News/2008/February/27/arrest_solicitation_minor.aspx

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Newcomerstown, Ohio man arrested on 11 sex crime charges

Posted in Internet crimes against children at 22:55 by Administrator

Dr. Kardasz: The following story from CentralOhio.com describes the arrest of an Internet sexual predator. Great work!
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Newcomerstown, Ohio man arrested on 11 sex crime charges

By Kathy Thompson, Staff Writer

Cleveland, Ohio – A Newcomerstown man faces 11 sex crime charges after he drove more than an hour from his home to a park in Oakwood Village in Cuyahoga County in early February to meet with an 11-year-old girl and have sex.

Instead, Ronald Foster, 59, of 312 Heller Drive, was greeted by the Oakwood Village Police Department and he was charged with one count of attempted rape, one count of attempted kidnapping, seven counts of importuning and two counts of possession of criminal tools.

Spokesperson for the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office, Ryan Miday, said his office along with the Oakwood Village worked with investigators with the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force, the Police Departments of Lindale, Brooklyn Heights, Rocky River, University Heights and Newcomerstown, the FBI out of Cleveland, and the Cuyahoga and Tuscarawas County Sheriff’s Offices.

Miday said Foster had been chatting online with a girl he thought was 11-years-old from Bedford while the “girl” was actually an undercover officer.

Foster said he wanted to have sex with the girl and sent at least two nude pictures of himself to her, Miday said.

When Foster was arrested, investigators found pornographic videos, a video camera and a tripod in the car.
Foster posted a $25,000 cash, property or surety bond on Feb. 22 and is scheduled for a pre-trial on March 3, Miday said.

Foster, who listed his occupation as being in rental management, also has two priors -one from Zanesville for petty theft in 1999 and one for carrying a concealed weapon in Coshocton in 1995.

If convicted, Foster could face up to 74 years in prison.

kthompson@nncogannett.com

Retrieved March 23, 2008 from http://www.centralohio.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/B9/20080227/NEWS01/802270304/1002

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03.11.08

Internet Crime – Unlawful images prevention tool – A black felt-tipped marker pen!

Posted in Internet crimes against children at 00:38 by Administrator

Today a parent asked me, “What is a good tool for preventing unlawful Internet images?” My tongue-in-cheek answer was, “A black felt-tipped marker pen to blot out the camera lens on your childs’ cell phone.”

Many teens are using cell phones equipped with cameras to create and share images and videos of nudism and sexual exploitation. Sadly, the images created are sometimes felonies. Young people do not realize that once a digital image is created it can become difficult to obliterate. If the image is sent across the Internet it is possible that it will duplicated, sent to others and become impossible to eradicate.

Many parents notify law enforcement agencies after finding unlawful images on their childs’ cell phone. Investigators often learn that the images have been traded back and forth between teen friends.

While parents should monitor cell phone use, obliterating the cell phone camera lens with black felt-tipped marker will truly prevent the creation of unlawful images. Although the idea may sound like blasphemy to cell phone manufacturers and to cell phone owners, parents should ask themselves; “Does my teen really need a camera-equipped cell phone?”

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03.07.08

Teen who killed dad angry he couldn’t use Internet

Posted in Internet crimes against children at 01:40 by Administrator

Dr. Kardasz:
The social networking opportunities provided by the Internet have become part of the fabric of life for many young people. As parents we may underestimate the seductive power of computers and their importance to some children and teens. The following story describes a tragedy involving a depressed 15 year old who shot his father after the youths’ Internet privileges were revoked.

Teen who killed dad angry he couldn’t use Internet

Jim Walsh, The Arizona Republic, 03/05/08

A 15-year-old boy told Mesa police he shot his father in the back of the head last month because he wouldn’t let the teenager use the Internet, saying My Space was his outlet. When Hughstan Schlicker heard officers talking about the investigation, he responded, “Dad came home, I shot him in the head, what investigation?” according to a Mesa police report.

Almost laughing, the teen told police, “along with murder, can you put me down for truancy, I ditched today,” the report said. “Can we clean up this before my mom gets home, I don’t want her to come home and see my dad dead.” Later, he told detectives he was angry with his father but couldn’t remember the reason. “But I was mad at him very much and I wish I could take everything back; I wish this was a bad dream but it’s not.”

Hughstan said during an interview with a homicide detective that he considered committing suicide in front of his father after finding a shotgun and ammunition in the garage of their home, but decided to murder his father instead and then commit suicide. Hughstan apparently surprised his father, Ted Schlicker, who was standing in the kitchen when the boy approached him from behind, aimed the gun and pulled the trigger as the family dog brushed against the teen’s leg, the report said.

Police arrested Hughstan after the slaying in the 100 block of South 56th St., Mesa, and accused him of first-degree murder. Ted Schlicker, 49, was found on the floor with his pistol still holstered on his hip.

An officer guarding the homicide scene was approached later that afternoon by Treva and Clayton Crull, who told him that their son was Hughstan’s best friend. They told the officer that when they came home from work, they discovered a message on their answering machine from Hughstan saying “he would not see them for a long time because he just killed his father. They said at first they thought it was a joke, but they tried to call Hughstan back several times, but they got no answer,” the report said. In a subsequent interview with detectives, Treva Crull said she “thought very highly of Hughstan and said he was a polite boy.” She said her son and Hughstan often spent the night at each other’s house. The boys met when they were in third grade. Treva Crull said her son told her that Hughstan wasn’t at Brimhall Junior High School that day, where they went to school together, but that Hughstan had missed class before and it wasn’t unusual.

Hughstan told police that he called in sick to school that day, faking his father’s voice, and spent the day lounging around the house.
The Crull’s son also told police that Ted Schlicker always carried a handgun, but she never saw him take it out of the holster. The boy also said he never saw Hughstan handle a gun and never “expressed any curiosity with the many guns in the home,” the report said.
Police seized numerous guns from the home during the investigation, according to the report.

Hughstan told detectives that he used the Internet to communicate with his friends, and that two of his friends helped him when he tried to commit suicide a couple of weeks earlier. The report had no details. Since his father took the Internet away, Hughstan said he was “just so depressed all the time,” the report said. When his father came home, Hughstan said he pointed the 12-gauge shotgun at his father “and I was getting ready to pull the trigger” when his dog walked by and brushed his leg. He said he glanced down at the dog and squeezed the trigger, the report said. “I know it’s not an accident I did intentionally kill,” he told police. The transcribed tape Hughston’s interview with detectives shows his mother entered the room at some point and began participating. “I know, I know it happened, we have to get passed this, it’s not going to change anything between you and me,” Judy Schlicker said. “You’re still my son and I love you no matter what OK? I’ll be there whenever you need me.” Judy Schlicker then started crying. When she asked Hughstan why he shot his father, he said, “I didn’t really mean to. I was just planning to scare him.” Hughstan then contradicted what he had told detectives earlier, telling his mother that he accidentally squeezed the trigger and shot his father.

Retrieved March 2, 2008 from http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/0305dadmurder0306-on.html

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